The successions of blows that have befallen the market over the past year have had a serious and detrimental impact on the property market. From the implementation of the National Credit Act in June 2007, to the inflationary rise in interest rates and fuel costs to the global sub-prime crisis, local power outages and civil unrest, political issues on our borders - all have contributed to a very different business climate than the one that prevailed.

It is only by taking into account the current circumstances that many home owners find themselves in that new opportunities can be uncovered.

From being bullish property investors, many South Africans have become increasingly concerned at the large slice of their monthly incomes their bond installment takes out. There is therefore strong interest to discover a better way of managing their financial affairs with their home loan taking a pivotal role in addressing it. There's the rub! You as a home owners want to have a better bond offering that gives you a worthwhile and workable solution to your broad financial needs - especially if you form part of those wilting under current interest rates!

There are still many home owners who do not realize that the equity (The current market value of a home minus the outstanding mortgage balance) available in their properties may hold the key to the end of their financial difficulties. At a cost of approximately 1% of the current outstanding loan balance, the equity held in the property can be realized into cash that can be used to consolidate more expensive debt in the cheapest way.

The current South African residential switch market is R800bn strong, surely this should prove that it is a viable solution! There are switching channels who only specializes in switches and with an innovative array of product features, clients are able to use their home loans as a tool, not just to raise money but also to save money. And we can be your link to these channels. We submit these applications on your behalf and will “move” your existing home loan to another institution to access the equity in your property. The equity cannot be sold but the banks do however lend money against it. We will apply for the total market value of your home, covering the outstanding balance owed to the bank and more to give you access to positive cash flow.

Home equity loans offer significant tax savings due to the fact that the interest paid on a home equity loan is tax-deductible. Home equity loans are often used to consolidate other debt with high interest rates (like credit card debt), to finance large expenses (such as college or a wedding), or to purchase other costly items. There are two main types of home equity loans. The first type is the traditional home equity loan, also known as the second mortgage, which lends out a lump sum of money that must be repaid over a fixed period. The second type is the home equity line of credit, which provides the borrower with a checkbook or a credit card that is used to borrow funds against the home equity. Funds borrowed from a traditional home equity loan start accruing interest immediately after the lump sum is disbursed; funds borrowed from a home equity line of credit do not begin accruing interest until a purchase is made against the equity.

Switching your home loan can definitely ease your cash flow strains in this current market and we can help you obtain this “growth” in your property and help you put the extra cash flow to great use. You have to still qualify for the higher loan amount and increase in loan repayments but we can help you assess your affordability in order to see if you would qualify.